Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Matt Hancock and Michael Tomlinson

Tuesday 27th November 2018 Commons Chamber

[Michael Tomlinson (Mid Dorset and North Poole) (Con)]

1. What steps he is taking to support local pharmacies.

[The Secretary of State for Health and Social Care (Matt Hancock)]

Community pharmacies play a vital role in our health service, but we know they can do more, and we are determined to see them do more, to keep people healthy.

[Michael Tomlinson]

I am grateful to the Secretary of State for that answer, because he is absolutely right in what he says. The Dorset Local Pharmaceutical Committee is very active and is promoting the policy of Pharmacy First, which should help to relieve pressure on our general practitioners, and even on our accident and emergency facilities. What is he doing to support that policy?

[Matt Hancock]

I agree very much with my hon. Friend that pharmacies can play an increasing role in helping to make sure that people get their healthcare where they need it, and in keeping the pressure off GPs and off secondary care by making sure that people can help themselves to stay healthy. We are piloting 111 directing people to pharmacies as well as to GPs and, where appropriate, to secondary care, and encouraging people to use pharmacies for minor ailments, but there is much more we can do together on this.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Matt Hancock and Michael Tomlinson

Thursday 8th February 2018 Commons Chamber

[Matt Hancock]

We had a commitment to reach 90% of the UK landmass with mobile coverage by the end of last year. Ofcom is assessing whether that has been met. We now have a commitment to get it up to 95%. We are doing that largely through a commercial roll-out. There is no doubt that mobile phone coverage is going up. It is just a question whether it is going up fast enough.

[Michael Tomlinson (Mid Dorset and North Poole) (Con)]

6. What steps his Department is taking to support tourism across the UK.

Telecommunications Infrastructure (Relief from Non-Domestic Rates) Bill

Debate between Matt Hancock and Michael Tomlinson

2nd reading: House of Commons
Monday 10th July 2017 Commons Chamber

[Michael Tomlinson (Mid Dorset and North Poole) (Con)]

I am grateful to the Minister for confirming that 100% of properties will have access to this by 2020, but will he confirm what speeds they will have access to? At the moment, there is a range of 2 megabits per second for the universal service and 24 megabits per second and more for the superfast service. What range of speeds is he talking about when he refers to 100%?

[Matt Hancock]

We have said 10 megabits per second as a minimum, and that is Ofcom’s analysis of the needs of the average household today; this is about making sure there is a service everybody can use. As we ask people to pay their taxes, get their passports or do their rural payments service applications online, it is a perfectly reasonable request back to us in government that people should have a decent level of broadband. If people want the really tip-top level, they may have to pay more for it, and that is not unreasonable either. We are saying that there must be a decent level of high-speed broadband. At the moment, we have said 10 megabits per second as a minimum, but we have also said that that has to be reviewed in an upwards direction in due course.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Matt Hancock and Michael Tomlinson

Wednesday 21st October 2015 Commons Chamber

[Matthew Hancock]

Until the end of the year 2014-15, the amount spent on the Chilcot inquiry was £10,375,000. We have said that budget is available to make sure that this inquiry can be brought to a swift conclusion.

[Michael Tomlinson (Mid Dorset and North Poole) (Con)]

T2. What steps is the Minister taking to improve access for our small and medium-sized enterprises to Government procurement, not least for our businesses in Mid Dorset and North Poole, such as Cobham in Wimborne and Tradewind in Wareham?

[Matthew Hancock]

My hon. Friend makes an important point, which is that a huge contribution can be made to Government procurement by small businesses. In the previous Parliament we hit our target of a quarter of Government procurement going to small business, and in this Parliament we have a new goal that a third of Government business should go to small and medium-sized enterprises.